Automated banking machines are known in the prior art. Automated banking machines are commonly used to carry out transactions such as dispensing cash, checking account balances, paying bills and/or receiving deposits from users. Other types of automated banking machines may be used to purchase tickets, to issue coupons, to present checks, to print scrip and/or to carry out other functions either for a consumer or a service provider. For purposes of this description any device which is used for carrying out transactions involving transfers of value shall be referred to as an automated banking machine.
Automated banking machines often have the capability of accepting deposits from users. Such deposits may include items such as envelopes containing checks, credit slips, currency, coin or other items of value. Mechanisms have been developed for receiving such items from the user and transporting them into a secure compartment within the banking machine. Periodically a service provider may access the interior of the machine and remove the deposited items. The content and/or value of the deposited items are verified so that a credit may be properly applied to an account of the user or other entity on whose behalf the deposit has been made. Such depositories often include printing devices which are capable of printing identifying information on the deposited item. This identifying information enables the source of the item to be tracked and credit for the item correlated with the proper account after the item is removed from the machine.
Many automated banking machines accept deposits from users in envelopes. Because the contents of the envelope are not verified at the time of deposit, the user's account cannot be credited for the deposit until the envelope is retrieved from the machine and the contents thereof verified. Often this must be done by persons who work for a financial institution. Delays in crediting a user's account may be experienced due to delays in removing deposits from machines, as well as the time it takes to review deposited items and enter appropriate credits. If the deposited items include instruments such as checks, further delays may be experienced. This is because after the instruments are removed from the machine they must be presented for payment to the appropriate institution. If the instrument is not honored or is invalid the depositing customer's account cannot be credited for the deposit. Alternatively in situations where a credit has been made for a deposited instrument that is subsequently dishonored, the user's account must be charged the amount of the credit previously given. In addition the user commonly incurs a “bad check” fee due to the cost associated with the institution having to handle a dishonored deposit. All of these complications may result in delays and inconvenience to the user.
Another risk associated with conventional depositories in automated banking machines is that deposited items may be misappropriated. Because deposited checks and other instruments are not cancelled at the time of receipt by the automated banking machine, they may be stolen from the machine and cashed by unauthorized persons. Criminals may attempt to break into the machine to obtain the items that have been stored in the depository. Alternatively persons responsible for transporting items from the machine or persons responsible for verifying the items may misappropriate deposited instruments and currency. Alternatively the handling required for transporting and verifying the contents of deposits may result in deposited instruments being lost. Such circumstances can result in the user not receiving proper credit for deposited items.
To reduce many of the drawbacks associated with conventional depositories, which receive deposits in the form of envelopes or other items, automated devices that can read and cancel deposited instruments have been developed. An example of such a device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,540,425 which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. Such devices are capable of reading the coding on checks or other deposited items. For example, bank checks include magnetic ink coding commonly referred to as “micr.” The micr coding on a check can be used to identify the institution upon which the check is drawn. The coding also identifies the account number of the issuer of the check and the check number. This coding commonly appears in one or several areas on the instrument. Reading this coding in the automated banking machine enables the machine operator to determine the source of checks or other instruments that have been presented.
Imaging devices may also be used in processing instruments. Such imaging devices may be used to produce data corresponding to an image of the item that has been deposited. This image may be reviewed to determine the nature of the deposited item, and along with the information that can be obtained from the coding on the instrument allows processing of the credit to the user much more readily. Automated instrument processing systems also may provide the capability of printing an indication that the check or other instrument has been deposited and cancelled after it has been received. This reduces the risk that the instrument will subsequently be misappropriated and cashed by unauthorized persons.
While automated deposit accepting and processing devices provide many advantages and benefits, existing devices may also have drawbacks. One drawback is that an instrument deposited by a customer may correspond to two or more overlapped sheets rather than a single sheet. If the extra sheet(s) are not detected by the machine, there exists the possibility that one or more of the extra sheets may never be processed and/or may be processed only after a significant delay.
Mechanical sensors may be employed to determine when multiple overlapped sheets have been deposited. Such mechanical sensors may measure the thickness of the deposited item and based on the measurement determine if the item corresponds to more than one overlapped sheet.
However, mechanical measurement to distinguish a single sheet from multiple overlapped sheets may not be accurate if the thickness of the items being measured are not uniform. For example, checks are often printed by various different entities and may have significant variations in thickness. As a result, a relatively thick single check may have a thickness which corresponds to two overlapped relatively thinner checks. Mechanical sensors measuring the thickness of the deposited item may incorrectly identify the relatively thick single check as being two overlapped checks (referred to herein as a double).
Consequently there exists a need for a sensor in an automated banking machine which is operative to accurately distinguish between single sheets and multiple overlapped sheets which are deposited in the machine. In addition, there exists a need to distinguish between single sheets and multiple sheets deposited in an automated banking machine where the sheets have a wide variation in thicknesses such as with checks.